Oral rehabilitation of a Wall Street executive who was afraid scared of the dentist. Total treatment time was about nine hours in two visits during one business week: Monday (four hours) and Friday (five hours). This patient hid his dental condition for over ten years by never smiling.
In the first row of photos, note that the occlusion teeth bite was over-closed due to a prior history of an eating disorder, now controlled, and a current teeth grinding habit.
An Oral Surgery consultation with panoramic x-ray (second row) was performed prior to treatment to evaluate opening the dental bite.
The third row shows x-rays taken after the Endodontist completed eight root canals on the first day on tooth #'s: 6 - 11 and 14, 15. This was accomplished with just enough dental sedation to keep the patient comfortable but he was awake the whole time.
The fourth row shows the dental laboratory processed 11 teeth temporary dental bridge and the cast gold post and cores - with Kaitlyn loops - for the root canal treated teeth.
The fifth row shows the cast gold post and cores cemented.
The sixth row shows the lab-processed temporary bridge in place after the oral surgeon extracted tooth #'s: 3 - 5 and 12, crown lengthening gum surgery was performed on tooth #'s: 6 - 11, and a distal wedge gum surgery was performed on #15. The patient was not nervous or anxious during these dental procedures either. He did not feel helpless due to appropriate behavior modification during his office visit. He just felt emotionally comfortable during his smile makeover.
The patient will have a final porcelain metal teeth bridge made after the gums heal. Dental implants may also be placed in the upper right posterior. A bite plate is also necessary to try to mitigate the force of tooth grinding. Referral for pharmacological management of anxiety is also worthwhile. Before and after pictures. Image #1 of 2.

Smile makeover for a dental phobia patient. Before and after full mouth oral rehabilitation photos.
Image #2 of 2.

Fear of the dentist. This 40 year old female had a fixed bridge attached to teeth in her lower jaw that she could remove from her tooth sockets. She hadn't been to a dentist in over ten years due to dental phobia. We began treatment by making the patient comfortable. Then the Oral Surgeon removed the epulis fissuratum in preparation for dental implants.

Upper Jaw oral rehabilitation with twelve temporary dental crowns for a dental fear phobia patient. Before and after photos. This smile makeover took two hours of treatment time during one morning. More dentistry is needed.

This photo documents the effects of using Calcium Channel blockers with inadequate periodontal maintenance on a dental phobia anxiety patient. Calcium Channel blockers are commonly used to treat high blood pressure, angina pectoris and coronary artery disease. Physicians should obtain periodontal clearance before prescribing such medication. This patient began oral rehabilitation with dental sedation.

Full mouth oral rehabilitation on a nervous dental patient who was seeking a smile makeover. This patient was too scared of dentistry to sit in the dental chair for several visits! Before and after pictures.
This patient had been wearing a very old, broken temporary dental bridge; she had been recementing it herself daily for years. The after photo shows a new dental laboratory processed provisional teeth bridge placed later that same day.
We successfully controlled this patient's dental fear phobia through emotionally supportive behaviors that gave her control over us.

Diagnosis: dental fear anxiety, nervous or scared of dentistry, or just afraid of the dentist. Whatever you call it this patient did not like dentistry! Get into a patient's head and heart before you get into their mouth. Dentistry is about people not teeth.

Oral Rehabilitation for a dental phobia patient. 20 temporary teeth crowns caps, 14 teeth received root canal and 6 teeth extractions. Smile makeover treatment time: one visit. Before and after photos.
This dental anxiety patient was successfully managed with behavior modification and nitrous oxide gas. She was a bright and successful businesswoman who had difficulty giving up control so we let her maintain it. She successfully overcame her fear of dentistry by learning she was not helpless when under the care of a dentist.

Smile makeover - oral rehabilitation - of a very nervous dental patient who was very scared of the dentist. Before and after pictures. This dentistry included two complete jaws of of temporary provisional dental crowns, root canal therapy performed on fourteen teeth and six teeth extractions.
This dental treatment took only one day from 9 am to 5 pm. The dental laboratory technicians and specialists including the Endodontist, Oral Surgeon and Periodontist were scheduled for specific times throughout the day. This dental fear phobia patient was kept comfortable throughout the day with nitrous oxide conscious dental sedation.

Oral rehabilitation of a dentist fear anxiety patient. This lovely retired woman had not been to the dentist in 18 years. There was significant mouth odor from the dental infection in her gums caused by oral bacteria. She was sick of it and wanted a smile makeover completed quickly and comfortably. Before and after pictures.
Dental sedation was provided with nitrous oxide - laughing gas - to achieve a comfortable state of conscious sedation. These before and after pictures document how much dentistry can be performed when a dental phobia patient is emotionally and physically comfortable. This dental treatment took 15 weeks only because of the time needed for healing of the gums otherwise it could have all be completed in one or two weeks.
This case is now over ten years old. The patient moved to Florida but flies up every three months for her regular dental prophylaxis and examination. She frequently brings morning bagels for the staff; she is no longer afraid of dentistry.

Smile makeover of a 40 year old male, married jeweler who - you guessed it - was afraid of the dentist! This patient evidently made a New Years resolution to finally overcome his dental phobia fear and finally fix his teeth. He needed emotional help and it was readily provided as seen in these before and after pictures.
The patient learned to see his teeth as jewelry and became comfortable with the dental treatment; his dental anxiety disappeared. He did not experience tooth pain in the office. Temporary provisional dental crowns caps were placed during four days of dental treatment. More dental work remains for completion.

Full mouth oral rehabilitation of a dental phobia patient. Starting pictures. The initial visit may only focus on communication and listening to the patient's dental anxiety and fear. The next step is to determine what teeth, if any, may be saved at least temporarily. It is easier for a patient to emotionally adjust to fixed temporary teeth that have at least some amount of retention provided by natural teeth abutments. The teeth chosen were #6, 11, 22 and 28.
The decision to fabricate a removable immediate partial denture, rather than a fixed lab processed temporary teeth bridge, was determined by the particular periodontal weakness of tooth #28. The patient was informed that the immediate prosthesis was to be used during healing and that the four remaining teeth abutments, particularly #28, might be subsequently extracted.
She appreciated becoming involved in her dental treatment and this reduced her being scared of the dentistry. A little nitrous oxide conscious dental sedation also helped. People who are comforted emotionally can usually be treated with low levels of nitrous oxide.

Before and after photos show a smile makeover dental fear anxiety patient after a one day oral rehabilitation. Help the patient overcome their fear of the dentist so they are not scared to walk into the dental office. Teach them they are not helpless; they are in control of the dentist and their dentistry. Help them not to be afraid.

Full mouth oral rehabilitation for a pretty, 33 year-old female. This woman had multiple previous bad dental experiences and was not afraid of the dentist. She had avoided dentistry for many years due to an uncontrolled dental fear.
Dental treatment included porcelain fused to metal dental crown & bridge, root canal therapy on all teeth abutments, a root tip extractions, and facial cosmetic dental bonding on both upper lateral incisor teeth. The upper anterior root canal and dental crowns were first completed to show her how pretty her teeth could look and that it could be accomplished quickly and without tooth pain. The Oral Surgeon completed teeth extractions of the hopeless teeth at one time and initiated early to allow time for healing before final teeth preparation and impressions for teeth bridge work - dental crowns. Root canal was performed on the posterior teeth abutments before their preparation - drilling - for bridgework. The patient experienced minimal post-operative tooth pain. Controlling teeth pain with prophylactic endodontics root canal is ironically one method how to help dental phobia patients overcome their anxiety. No mouth pain means comfortable patients.

Early stage before and after photos of a smile makeover on a dental phobia fear patient. Dentists should look for nervous behavior in all new patients because many people are initially ashamed to discuss it. Humor can help many people overcome their dental anxiety particularly if one can accomplish the dental treatment as planned.

Information about these dental photos

In medicine and dentistry "left" and "right" are based upon the orientation of the patient's body and not how they appear in a photograph of a smile. For example, a reference to the upper left teeth will actually appear to be on the right side when viewing a picture of the face and similarly an upper right tooth will appear to be on the left side.

Many words in dentistry like oral and mouth have a similar meaning and are frequently used together to help our readers find specific words they best understand. This is particularly important because a majority of our visitors are from countries where English is not their primary language. Maxilla or maxillary refer to the upper jaw. Mandible or mandibular refer to the lower jaw.

There are many other similar word combinations used throughout this website because our pages are read by patients and dentists. A few of the most common are discussed here. Tooth decay, tooth cavity and dental caries all mean the same thing. Tooth, teeth and dental are also frequently interchanged as in teeth veneers or dental veneer laminate. Oral rehabilitation and dental reconstruction mean smile makeover. The word for x-ray may be used with or without a hyphen (this is true for other words too) and can also be called a radiograph.